The invention relates to a weather station, in particular, to a weather station that is also suitable for private use. The station has at least one element mounted on bearings on a housing, or rack, on a vertical axis for alignment with the direction of the wind and with a measuring device, which depending on the angle position of the element aligning in the direction of the wind, provides an electrical signal.
Weather stations, especially for private use, are known. In particular, such weather stations are also known that can be used to measure wind direction and wind force, whereby the wind direction is measured by means of a wind vane, the angle position of which is converted to an electric signal, by means of a potentiometer, the slider of which is connected with the wind vane as a driving mechanism.
The signal corresponding to the wind direction and the signal corresponding to the wind force derived from a wind wheel, or impeller wheel, is input to an electronic analysis and control unit, which then sends digital data corresponding to these signals by means of a transmitter of the electronic analysis and control unit to a spatially distant display station.
The object of the present invention is to improve a weather station to the effect of achieving a simplified design, in particular, of the measuring device for generating the signal corresponding to the wind direction with improved sensitivity.
In order to achieve this object, a weather station with at least one element mounted on bearings on a housing or rack on a vertical axis for alignment with the direction of the wind and with a measuring device, which depending on the angle position of the element aligning in the direction of the wind provides an electrical signal, wherein the measuring device is an opto electric measuring device with at least two light paths. Each of the at least two light paths has its own light-emitting element and which have a common light detector and form a light path configuration, each light path is used to scan a group of markings, which are located around an axis of at least one screen in such a manner that the markings provide a code when scanning that defines the angle area of the position of the element aligning with the direction of the wind. The at least one screen and the light path configuration corresponding to the position of the element aligning with the direction of the wind can be swivelled relative to each other around the axis of the screen, and an electronic control and analysis unit is provided that individually activates the light-emitting elements during a measuring or analysis phase and hereby determines the angle position of the element aligning with the direction of the wind.
In the invention, the wind is measured in angle steps or in angle areas, for example in a total of 16 angle areas with the use of a total of four groups of optically scannable markings and accordingly of four light paths, each of which scans the markings of one group. The wind direction is measured in this process fully without contact, so that an accurate display is possible even at low wind forces.
A further special feature of the invention is that the light paths, of which at least one is allocated to one group of optically scannable markings, each has its own light-emitting elements, which can economically be realized in the form of light-emitting diodes, but only one common light detector or receiver for all light paths. The single groups of markings are then scanned successively in time by corresponding activation of its allocated light-emitting element and/or the scanning of the individual groups takes place by pulsed activation of the allocated light-emitting element each with a different pulse frequency, so that the presence of a marking of a particular group can be determined based on the frequency of the received light signal or conversely that the absence of a marking of a particular group can be determined based on the absence of a particular frequency in the received light signal. Also by triggering the light-emitting elements of the various light paths with different pulse frequencies these elements can be activated preferably for a limited time and/or successively in time.